-william w



(No Model.) I

W. W. BEACH.

, BLI'NDEB. FOR BRIDLES. No. 347,862. Patented Aug. 24, 1886.

WITNESSES INVENTOR law-F W M ATTORNEY UNITED STATES PATENT @FFlCEo WVILLIAM \V. BEACH, OF N ElV YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TO DAVID R. MORSE,

OF BROOKLYN, N. Y., AND RANDOLPH M. STELLE, OF PLAINFIELD, N. J.

BLINDER FOR BRIDLES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 347,862, dated August 24,1886.

Application filed June 27, 1884.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM W. BEACH, ol' the city, county, and State of New York, have invented certain Improvements in Blinders or Winkers for Headstalls, Bridles, 850.,

of which the following is a specification.

The blinder or winker for harness in ordinary use is composed of leather or other solid material, and when in place upon the horses 0 head, and in the usual position with reference to the eyes of the animal, acts as a deflector, directing currents of air into the eyes of the animal, which impinge upon the eyes, and are more or less productive of harm, and, furthermore, produce even greater mischief by earrying dust and other injurious particles into the eyes.

The object of my invention is to provide a blinder or winker of novel construction, which will serve all the purposes of the ordinary blinder or winker, and at the same time permit the currents of air to pass through the blinder or winker, thereby obviating the dangers incident to common blinders or winkers,

as hereinbefore explained, mysaid invention being moreover, by slight modifications, capable of being employed as a protector over the eyes of the animal, permitting sufficient sight or vision therethrough for the Wants of the animal, and at the same time preventing the access of strong currents of air and particles of dust and other injurious material to the eyes.

My said invention comprises certain novel means, hereinafter particularized in the claims, whereby said objects are effectually secured.

Figure 1 is a side view and partial sectional view of a blinder or winker made according to my said invention, and Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional view taken in the line a: w of Fig. 1.

A is a piece-or sheet of foraminated material, preferably of wire-cloth, which may be of any desired mesh or character-as, for example, from No. 10 mesh to No. mesh, as V such terms are understood in the wire-cloth trade.

In place of wire-cloth, and as an equivalent thereof, perforated sheet metal may be used. It is intended that the foraminated material,

whether of wire-cloth orperforated sheet metal, shall be of such character that currents of air Serial No. 136,178. (No model.)

may pass'readily through the same and carry therewith particles of dust or grit that may be borne upon or with the said air-currents.

B is a surrounding rim, formed of leather or other equivalent substantially flexible material. 'The leather may be that usually designated patent-leather or any other suitable kind. The leather or like substantially flexible material is first formed into astrip of suitable width, which is then folded upon the circumferential edge of the piece or sheet A, the lateral portions of the strip being upon the opposite sides of said circmnlerential portion of the piece or sheet A, as indicated at a in Fig. 2, while the middle portion of said strip is folded over the rough edge of said piece or sheet, thereby not only protecting said rough edge, but also preventing the roughness of the said edge from being presented to sight or touch. TherowCofstitchingissewedthrough the two side portions, a, of the rim B, and also through the openings or meshes of the piece or sheet A. thereby firmly and rigidly securing the said rim to the said piece or sheet.

It is to be observed that while the leather or equivalent material of which the rim B is composed is in a certain sense substantially flexible, yetit is designed to have sufficient rigidity and stiffness to retain the blinder or winker in shape under ordinary conditions.

The row 0 of stitching may be either of thread such as is ordinarily used in harnesswork, or it may be of fine wire, and the sewing may be performed either by hand or by suitable machinery.

The blinder or winker as thus constructed may be attached to the headstall or bridle by any suitable meansas, for example, by straps Danswering to those of the ordinary blinder 0 or winker, and attached in place by stitching O, or by any other suitable means. The rim B may be of any suitable width and diameter, and the sheet A may be of any required size or of any desired circumferential coufigu- 5 ration.

I am aware that it has been proposed to construct protecting devices for the eyes of horses in connection with headstalls or bridles by inserting wire-cloth in an opening previously roo formed in a sheet of patent-leather; but such construction is open to very serious objection,

inasmuch as the leather removed in forming the opening is practically wasted, and the expcnse of constructing a device of such character is so great as to render it incapable of extended sale or use. Furthermore, such a construction leaves the edges of the device composed of raw edges of leather, which require ornamental stitching and staining to render them presentable to the eye, whereas in my invention a blinder or winker may be constructed at'a much less cost than those in ordinary use, and a mere fraction of the cost of eyeprotectors formed by inserting wire-cloth in an opening formed of sheet metal or material as aforesaid; and, furthermore, by means of my invention, the rounded surface I) of the rim B, being continuous with the surface of the lateral portion a of said rim, provides an ornamental and secure covering for the ragged edges of the foraniinated material without the aid of any additional stitching, and consequently at a mere fraction of the expense which would be required if it were necessary to stitch the outer edges of the rim.

W'hat I claim as my invention is- As an improved article of manufacture, the

blinder or winker for headstalls or bridles, 

